


Name of the Rose

by furloughday



Category: Shoujo Kakumei Utena | Revolutionary Girl Utena
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shop, F/F, LGBTQ Female Character of Color, Misses Clause Challenge, Tea
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-21
Updated: 2012-12-21
Packaged: 2017-11-21 20:30:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,359
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/601761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/furloughday/pseuds/furloughday
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Juri meets Nanami in a tea shop.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Name of the Rose

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kurushi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kurushi/gifts).



> Dear Kurushi, you are a perfect fandom person, from your views on Utena to your discussion of personal ideas of revolution to your description of yourself. I'm so pleased to have gotten to write this for you. Happy Yuletide!

"Can you make a London Fog?" Tenjou Utena-kun asked at campus tea shop _La Rose_.

Behind the counter, Anthy smiled and rang up the order. "Of course."

"Thanks," Utena said, and then listed to one side as her friend, who had loudly declared herself Wakaba the Onion Princess, looped an arm through hers and tugged.

"How international," Wakaba cried. "Utenaaaaaa!"

Juri had seen them there once before.

While they talked about a grammar test they had later that day, Anthy turned away to run hot water for tea. She steamed milk and put loose leaf into a pot, and the blonde girl just in front of Juri in line made impatient noises and crossed her arms over her chest and blew air out under her bangs. Juri turned to look out the clouded window where outside it was storming. She thought about Macro Econ and how the biggest exam of her senior year was in just one week. Although she was top of her class, that didn't mean she could slack. She hadn't been at her personal best the last few weeks, so she had to study hard. She wasn't one to trust a miracle.

When she turned back, there was a wide, short mug on the counter, milky and piping hot. Before sliding it over, Anthy waited with her hands clasped behind her back while a grey, mouse-monkey creature wobbled across the counter top to heft a sugarcube half its size from a bowl up to the lip of the mug and tip it in, and then go back for one more, arms and legs shaking with the effort of sugar. When it went to collapse behind the tip jar, Anthy poured foam as a finishing touch and then placed the mug on a saucer in front of Utena.

"Oh," Utena said, when she got a look at the design of a rose in the foam. "Thank you."

"It's no problem," Anthy told her, eyes squinting up in a smile behind her glasses. The moment held, and the girl in front of Juri sighed with impatience until Wakaba dragged Utena away, shouting, "Bye!"

Anthy greeted the next girl, nodding. "Nanami."

"Green Tea," Nanami said in clipped tones. "And hurry, I'm trying to study."

She left without paying.

Juri stepped up to the counter and asked, "Do you want me to—?" She motioned to where Nanami was seating herself in a plush, gold armchair in an alclove by the window seat.

"No, that's fine. Her brother is our omelette chef, he'll pay for her drink."

"Well, she seems very rude," Juri said, blunt. There were worse things to be.

A minute later, when Juri was arranging her pens, opening her notebooks, Nanami shrieked, "You idiot girl, I said oolong!" 

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Anthy said, smiling. "My mistake."

Nanami turned up her nose as Anthy went to remake the tea pot, but then cracked open one eye to look at a tall student who had just emerged from the back of the cafe. He had long red hair and was wearing an apron. Touga, Juri thought.

He didn't look Nanami's way. He slid an omelette over the counter which Anthy took and went to place on a table. Nanami went back to her reading, fuming.

 

 

Roses climbed the hard glass and steel of the windows like vines, allowing only some light in. No one complained because it seemed only right, and so the custodial staff never cut them. Because of this, the inside of the cafe felt like the inside of an aquarium, or a cozy cage. Iron lanterns glowed with warm light light and cool air chilled room when anyone went in or out through the front door which belonged to an elevator that could no longer run.

Nanami was there again. She had fashion magazines all over her table, but wasn't reading them. At cursory glance, she looked to be pulling fireworks from a package that was conspicuously labeled, _DANGER. DO NOT KEEP IN REACH OF CHILDREN_.

Juri turned back to her work, smoothing her hand over a page that was folded wrong. She moved a mechanical pencil back in line with her highlighters, and tried to concentrate, rolling her shoulders. She had seen Shiori on TV that morning, one of those modeling shows, and it had disrupted her concentration. She hadn't been able to concentrate all morning. Even now, with her books out in front of her spread over the tea table, Juri was staring at what sky she could see through the window, sipping her darjeeling dejectedly. Instead of thinking about econ, her favorite subject, she was daydreaming about dual-blade fencing, of sweat at the nape of her neck and the swift shuffle of feet on parquet floors, like they were 19th century lords and ladies of the court.

The cafe cat trundled by at one point, winding around Juri's legs and then trotting to the next table over where a man with big hair pulled back into a ponytail startled, knocking a notebook to the ground and grabbing his green rose teacup with one finger before it tipped off the edge.

"Cat," he bellowed, upsetting several students nearby. One girl pulled out a headphone out of her ear and shushed him. He growled and muttered, "This confounded cat. I'm allergic!"

Touga came by and shooed the cat away. It wandered to the far corner and sprang onto a soft cushion next to Nanami, and began to purr in a tepid beam of sunshine.

"Kitty," Nanami said, like she was greeting it by name. She had a pen hanging out of the corner of her mouth, and reached out a hand to pet the cat but continued to frown down at the papers in front of her, mumbling.

As Juri watched, Nanami glared over to where Anthy was making the rounds, gathering empty tea china and old napkins. Nanami waited until Anthy was close and then pulled a book of matches from her bag and struck one, making to light the wick that was just peeking out of the teacup. The wick sparkled and tried to light, but then Anthy was there, taking the tea and saucer from Nanami's table smoothly before the firework could catch flame.

"Thank you," Anthy said and moved away, setting the cup in a tray of other used dishes.

Juri watched Nanami collapse onto the cushions of the window seat, sun falling over her cheerily. The cat put its paw on Nanami's face, but she didn't move.

Juri smiled despite herself, and watched light pick out the more gold highlights of Nanami's hair and thought about broken dreams.

"That's a beautiful necklace," Utena said, stopping in front of Juri's table and breaking Juri from her reverie.

"Pardon?" Juri asked.

Utena nodded to the locket strung around Juri's neck. "Whose picture's inside?"

Juri frowned. Theirs was a small, private college, so that by now, anyone who was anyone had heard of how Shiori had trampled Juri's heart in a big public display, and since then Juri had ruled the school with an iron fist. Juri squinted up at Utena, trying to decide whether she was in the dark or was acting purposely obtuse.

"Are you a freshman?" Juri finally asked.

"Yes," said Utena. "Why?"

"Nevermind." Juri rubbed at the locket, and then held it in a fist. "The person was very dear to me. I have nothing more to say on the subject. I need to focus on my studies."

"Well, I'm sure things will work out!" Utena said, and her smile was a grating thing that met Juri's finely hardened despair. Juri grimaced.

 

 

Two days later, the pages of Juri's notebook were damp and she spread it open on the table to dry before she began reading. She couldn't concentrate, could only pay attention to the drama of Nanami in the corner, Nanami who was muttering over plans, unnoticed. Juri thought about how every person had their own, secret battle they enacted.

She forced herself to study for an hour, only looking up from her books when she heard Wakaba throw a fit and slam the elevator door with a rusted screech on her way out.

"Saionji-sempai," Juri called over, seeing that he was standing near the message board, smirking at where Wakaba had run out. "What are you posting?"

Saionji froze, in profile to her. Juri could feel Nanami's eyes on her, and felt the uncomfortable urge to prove herself.

"This message board is for clubs only," she said, louder than necessary, and met Saionji's icy glare with one of her own.

"Arisugawa Juri," Saionji hissed.

"What is it that you're posting?" she asked again, and stood and went over to him.

He rolled his eyes and pulled the letter, written on cute stationary, sky blue with chocolate hearts, from the board and crumpled it in a fist to drop it on the ground.

"Someone's insipid love notes," he said, and left.

Juri collected the paper and put it in the paper recycling, then went to move back to her table. But in an impulsive moment, she turned to Nanami who was still watching her with some interest.

"Drama queen," Nanami told her, nodding to the door. "Him. My brother's friend. He's kind of dramatic."

"You know," Juri said, placing a finger at the edge of Nanami's table. "I've seen you. You're quite dramatic yourself."

"Hey!" Nanami said, but looked pleased.

"If dueling has taught me anything, you should face your enemy face on or not at all," Juri told her.

"What?" Nanami looked uncertain about whether she was being criticized.

Juri flicked her eyes to where Anthy was leaning over the counter toward Utena. Utena, who looked taken aback but nevertheless pleased, gripping her computer bag in front of her, cheeks pinked.

"Also consider if she's worth such drastic measures you're going to for revenge," Juri said. "She doesn't even know, I'm sure."

"That's not the point," Nanami said, pushing her lips out into a pout. She looked adorable and Juri was surprised that she wanted to talk to her more. She didn't ever try for friends, they chose her because she was brave, with a strong sense of academic duty. Teachers feared her and students balked when she asked them how they did on exams to make conversation. But she never _tried_.

"How are you with a sword?" Juri asked, feeling surprisingly stupid with hope. But when Nanami drew herself up to sit straight, Juri realized that had come out wrong. She spread her hands, "It's just, I'd like a new dueling partner. You look like someone I'd like to fight."

Nanami stared up at her with concern, a small furrow between her eyebrows.

Juri shifted on her feet and looked out the window. "If you're interested, I mean."

"Touga-sempai," Anthy said, voice cutting clear and soft through the rustle of papers and the drip of rain outside, the low murmur of student voices that filled the cafe. Juri felt the moment Nanami's attention slipped sideways, away from her, to focus on the exchange.

"We've run out of cream," Anthy said.

Juri returned to her table.

 

 

There was dim piano music playing over the radio, scratchy. It was the day before finals, Juri felt like she was in a dream.

"What is this?" Miki said one table over, eyes closed and listening to the music. "I've heard it before."

He flipped what appeared to be a calculus take-home test and bent over it to draw a quick five lines in pencil, a treble clef, and some bubbled notes.

"Oni-san," the girl across from him said, leaning her head on her hand.

Nanami flounced in, deposited her things into a chair, and began unloading her bag all over the table, as per usual. She ordered three cakes and an oolong tea, and when Anthy came to drop them off at her table, Juri was still watching, waiting. Waiting for Nanami to shriek or make a fuss, to try to blow Anthy up with minifireworks or otherwise sabotage her, but instead, to Juri's surprise, Nanami only looked up and met Juri's gaze across the room.

As Juri watched, Nanami smirked and looked up to Anthy and stuck out her foot just as Anthy was stepping away from the table, tray held high over one shoulder.

Anthy's face was frozen in shock as the tray flew from her hand, suspended in the air above her, tea floating above tea cups and a napkin spread like a dove in surprised flight, and Juri didn't even have a moment to feel disappointment, only to fear for Anthy, wondering if she had the time to rush to catch her, to realize that of course she did not, before arms came up around Anthy to stop her mid-fall.

It was Utena, of course. Juri should have seen this eventuality a mile away.

"Himemya!" Utena said, arm pulling Anthy closer against her. The tea tray was held stable and righted on Utena's palm, high above them.

"Utena-san," Anthy breathed. She stared into Utena's eyes for a moment longer than was proper and then stepped away, adjusting her apron and standing with her hands clasped in front of her, looking down and smiling a small smile.

"If you were trying to make her look stupid in front of him, it didn't work," Juri told her, stopping by Nanami's table and smiling down at her. "He didn't notice. He's busy making omelettes."

When Nanami leaned back and put her hands behind her head to look up at her, Juri felt a kind of real amusement, despite how annoyed she should feel in the name of modern-day chivalry.

"Pity," Nanami said.

They turned their heads to watch as Anthy pulled out a small phone and passed it to Utena to put in her number.

"Well that's lucky," Juri said.

Nanami flipped her hair back and raised an eyebrow. "I don't know about that. Maybe it's fate."

 

 

When she finished the chapter assigned, Juri went to Nanami's table.

"Are you ready for that duel?" Nanami asked.

"Yes," Juri said.

She left her locket in the teacup like a fortune.


End file.
